Oklahoma congressman Markwayne Mullin made a move this week in the U.S. House to force consideration of his plan to bring down the price of gas.
The Republican Representative, who is also a candidate for the U.S. Senate to replace retiring Sen. Jim Inhofe, filed a discharge petition for his bill, H.R. 575, the Promoting Cross-Border Energy Infrastructure Act. The move was seen as an effort to force House Democrats to consider the bill to have an immediate impact on gasoline prices.
This legislation, cosponsored by 51 other members of the House, would establish transparent, reliable procedures for the construction and operation of energy facilities that cross the U.S. border between Canada or Mexico, ensuring the U.S. can more efficiently continue the trade of energy products such as oil, electricity, and natural gas.
“President Biden and House Democrats have looked to everyone but our domestic producers to lower prices at the pump,” Mullin said. “As the national average for gas prices has reached $5-per-gallon for the first time ever, this is unacceptable. One of the best ways we can support our producers and alleviate this pain is through regulatory certainty. Through this, cross-border pipelines can deliver lower costs to consumers and ease the economic burden across the U.S.”
“I encourage my House colleagues to join me in this effort so we can get this bill to the House floor,” Mullin concluded. “There are many Americans who cannot wait.”
Discharge petitions are considered rare and are often used to get a bill out of committee where leaders refuse to put the issue to a vote of the House. If Mullin were successful in his discharge petition, it would be considered an embarrassment to Democratic leaders including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Rep. Mullin would need the signatures of an absolute majority of House members to force a vote. Signatures are made publicly known so it would be unlikely he would obtain support from Democrats.
The full text of the bill can be found here.